Adrian Peterson “not far off” in recovery from groin surgery

Posted by Josh Alper on April 9, 2014, 4:48 PM EST

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Vikings running back Adrian Peterson made a quick comeback from a torn ACL to rush for 2,097 yards during the 2012 season, so it’s not shocking to learn that expects to be back to work soon after groin surgery in late January.

Peterson said on a conference call Wednesday that he is getting close to being fully recovered from the surgery, which came after Peterson missed a couple of games at the end of the season as a result of an injury suffered in a November game against the Cowboys. Peterson termed himself “not far off” from being able to participate in the team’s offseason workout program, although he stopped short of predicting when he’d be ready.

“I haven’t been able to put a date on [when I’ll be there], but, yeah, I do [plan to] as far as participating,” Peterson said, via the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. “Right now, the most important thing is being healthy. That’s what I’m doing. I’m rehabbing. I’m working out still to get the body back to where it needs to be.”

Peterson also said that he understood why new coach Mike Zimmer called for him to be a leader of the team and called being a leader for the organization something he takes pride in. It sounds like he’ll be leading from the field sooner rather than later, which is surely good news to Zimmer and the rest of the organization.